In recent years, with a reduction in size, weight, and thickness for electronic devices, the reduction in size has been required for electronic components for use in electronic devices. However, conventionally, electronic components such as capacitors and resonators are each configured separately, and the reduction just in size for these components thus has limitations in the reduction in size for electronic devices. Consequently, various multilayer ceramic substrates have been proposed which have elements, such as capacitors and resonators, configured therein.
In addition, in order to deal with the recent trends of further reductions in size and recent higher frequencies for multilayer ceramic substrates, various multilayer ceramic substrates has been also proposed which have a composite structure in which low dielectric-constant ceramic layers and high dielectric-constant ceramic layers are stacked. For example, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-29827 (Patent Document 1) and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-63861 (Patent Document 2), multilayer ceramic substrates have been proposed in which high dielectric-constant ceramic layers composed of a high dielectric-constant and low-dielectric-loss material, with elements such as capacitors and resonators configured therein, are placed so as to be sandwiched by low dielectric-constant ceramic layers with wiring formed and semiconductor elements mounted.
Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 also discloses a glass ceramic composition suitable for forming low dielectric-constant ceramic layers or a glass ceramic composition suitable for forming high dielectric-constant ceramic layers.
More specifically, Patent Document 1 discloses, in claim 1 thereof, a glass ceramic composition containing an MgAl2O4-based ceramic and glass. More particularly, a glass ceramic composition is described which contains: a MgAl2O4— based ceramic powder; and a glass powder containing 13 to 50 weight % of silicon oxide in terms of SiO2, 8 to 60 weight % of boron oxide in terms of B2O3, 0 to 20 weight % of aluminum oxide in terms of Al2O3, and 10 to 55 weight % of magnesium oxide in terms of MgO.
In addition, Patent Document 1 discloses, in claim 2 thereof, an alkaline-earth metal oxide which may be further contained in a proportion of 20 weight % or less, and in claim 6 thereof, the glass content which may be preferably 20 to 80 weight % of the total.
The glass ceramic composition described in Patent Document 1 achieves, in the case of a sintered body thereof, a relatively low relative permittivity such as, for example, 8 or less, and can be thus made suitable for high-frequency applications.
Next, Patent Document 2 discloses, as a high dielectric-constant material constituting high dielectric-constant ceramic layers with a relatively high relative permittivity, a material containing a BaO—TiO2—RE2O3 (RE is a rare-earth element) dielectric and glass. The glass contains, according to claim 2 of Patent Document 2, 10 to 25 weight % of SiO2, 10 to 40 weight % of B2O3, 25 to 55 weight % of MgO, 0 to 20 weight % of ZnO, 0 to 15 weight % of Al2O3, 0.5 to 10 weight % of Li2O, and 0 to 10 weight % of RO (R is at least one of Ba, Sr, and Ca). In addition, as described in claim 4 of Patent Document 2, the content of the glass is preferably 15 to 35 weight %.
On the other hand, Patent Document 2 discloses a material similar to that in Patent Document 1, as a low dielectric-constant material constituting the low dielectric-constant ceramic layers.
The inventors have first found insulation reliability to be further improved, as a result of making further experiments on the respective glass ceramic compositions described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 mentioned above. The cause is assumed as follows.
The glass contained in the glass ceramic composition described in each of Patent Documents 1 and 2 is indented to allow firing at a temperature of 1000° C. or lower, but is a composition that is likely to be crystallized. In the case of the glass ceramic compositions described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the glass component and the ceramic component react to deposit crystals in the firing process, and it is thus difficult to stabilize the crystal quantity and the quantity of the glass component at the time of completion of firing. Further, this instability of the crystal quantity and the quantity of the glass component at the time of completion of firing is assumed to decrease the insulation reliability.
For example, the glass contained in the glass ceramic compositions described in each of Patent Documents 1 and 2 contains a relatively large amount of MgO, this large amount of MgO in the glass is believed to deposit crystals of MgAl2O4 and/or Mg2SiO4 from the glass component, and this deposition is assumed to lead to a decrease in insulation reliability.
In addition, in particular, the high dielectric-constant material described in Patent Document 2 requires the addition of glass in order to allow firing at temperatures of 1000° C. or less, and on the other hand, requires a BaO—TiO2—RE2O3 based dielectric contained in order to increase the relative permittivity. However, free Ti ions from the BaO—TiO2—RE2O3 based dielectric cause oxygen defects. Furthermore, these oxygen defects can cause a decrease in insulation reliability in use at, in particular, high temperature and high voltage for a long period of time, etc.
In addition, the inventors of the present application have recognized, as a result of repeated experiments, problems of the compositions of the respective glass ceramic compositions described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, such as difficulty in stably achieving desired relative permittivity in a wide range from low relative permittivity to high relative permittivity.
More specifically, the glass contained in the glass ceramic compositions described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 is likely to react with the ceramic component to be crystallized in the firing process as described previously. When the crystals are deposited, the relative permittivity will be changed, and it will be thus difficult to achieve desired relative permittivity.
In addition, the glass contained in the glass ceramic compositions described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 fails to have favorable wettability to MgAl2O4 based ceramics or BaO—TiO2—RE2O3 based dielectrics. Therefore, the glass ceramic composition is not able to be sintered, unless a relatively large amount of glass is added. However, the large additive amount of glass will decrease the relative permittivity. Thus, it is difficult to prepare, in particular, high dielectric-constant materials.
Furthermore, as a specific problem with composite laminate ceramic electronic components, it has to be also considered whether the properties obtained in the case of a low dielectric-constant ceramic layer by itself and the properties obtained in the case of a high dielectric-constant ceramic layer by itself are almost maintained in the case of co-firing low dielectric-constant ceramic layers and high dielectric-constant ceramic layers. In particular, the glass contained in the glass ceramic composition described in each of Patent Documents 1 and 2 has a composition that is likely to be crystallized, and thus, from the perspective of difficulty in stabilizing the crystal quantity and the quantity of the glass component at the time of completion of firing, it is assumed that there can be also a good possibility that, as a result of co-firing the low dielectric-constant ceramic layer and the high dielectric-constant ceramic layer, the properties of the respective ceramic layers by themselves will be lost.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-29827    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-63861